Phil Jordan, Sawbill and I are continuing to produce our series of Weekend Quick Cryptic crosswords. We take turns, publishing one a fortnight, and this week it's Phil's turn.
You can find a link to the crossword here and the answers below.
Feel free to leave any comments or questions here as you would do on
TfTT
.
You can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here.
Before looking at the answers, if you would like some additional help, click the label below.
Hints and tips...
Some hints and tips:
- In 12A "novel" is an anagram indicator.
- In 25A the Shakespearian character is from the play The Tempest.
- In 26A the tea is CHA.
- In 3D the points are points of the compass.
- In 4D "aloud" is not a sound-like indicator.
- Think of a film star who retired from acting in 1966 for 20D
And click on this label to get the solution.
Solution and explanation of the answers...
Definitions
underlined in bold italics
, (
Abc
)* indicating anagram of Abc,{deletions} and [] other indicators.
1 Second sportsman on a horse (6-2)
RUNNER-UP – RUNNER (sportsman) UP (on a horse).
5 Fashionable young girl comes up short (4)
CHIC – CHIC{k} (young girl) without the last letter.
9 Officer at the heart of the matter we're told (7)
COLONEL – Sounds like, [we’re told], KERNEL (heart of the matter)
10 Cocktail of lemon and another fruit (5)
MELON – [Cocktail of] (lemon)*.
11 Stuck-up person starts some nasty obnoxious boasting (4)
SNOB – Initial letters of Some Nasty Obnoxious Boasting.
12 With a leg on each side, sit and read novel (7)
ASTRIDE – (sit read)* [novel].
14 Tent dweller is more affected (6)
CAMPER – Double definition.
16 Get off on fire (6)
ALIGHT – Double definition.
19 I'd clear out this small root (7)
RADICLE – (I’d clear)* [out].
21 River that’s essential to London, I learn (4)
NILE – Hidden in LonoN I LEarn.
24 Ruler loudly announces his presence (5)
AMEER – Sounds like [loudly announces) I’M HERE.
25 Do well in brief Shakespearean role (7)
PROSPER – PROSPER{o} (Shakespearean role) without the last letter.
26 Otherwise there’s no tea to be found around Chelsea (4)
ELSE – remove the CHA (tea) from chELSEa
27 Charlotte? She's a spoilt young woman! (8)
PRINCESS – Double definition.
1 Unsettle Gibraltar? (4)
ROCK – Double definition.
2 Material hidden by many Londoners (5)
NYLON – Hidden in maNY LONdoners.
3 Honour dizzy blonde losing 500 points at first (7)
ENNOBLE – E N (points of the compass), [dizzy] (blon{d}e)* without the D (500).
4 Design start of process aloud for data transfer (6)
UPLOAD – [Design] (p{rocess} aloud)*.
6 Giving assistance to apportion we're told (7)
HELPING – Apportion sounds like, [we’re told], A PORTION (helping).
7 Satisfies with what’s included (8)
CONTENTS – Double definition.
8 Don't begin to throw up - leave it out! (4)
OMIT – {v}OMIT (throw up) without the first letter.
13 Al Capone's winter wear - first rate (8)
SCARFACE – SCARF (winter wear) ACE (first rate).
15 Unfortunately named ship "Lunacy" (7)
MADNESS – [Unfortunately] (named)* SS (ship).
17 Old President Green (7)
LINCOLN – Double definition.
18 Moderate outburst (6)
TEMPER – Double definition.
20 Grant for film has run out of support (4)
CARY – Cary Grant the film star. CAR{r}Y (support) without an R (run).
22 Random sample without method at first - it's a mistake (5)
LAPSE – (sa{m}ple)* [random], without the first letter of Method.
23 Garfunkel's skills (4)
ARTS –
Double definition.
Thank you for a refreshing antidote to the last two QC's! Steady going until my LOI's Temper and Princess. Hesitated with Temper looking for validation from 27a. 27a had me looking for an anagram ('spoilt') including 'She's a' but eventually surmised it was not a Charlotte (as in Rampling) but a x Charlotte...
ReplyDeleteFavourites were SCARFACE, CARY, MADNESS, AMEER, and RUNNER-UP. I wondered whether loudly was necessary before announces but I guess in the sense of "out loud"? Thanks, much enjoyed!
ReplyDeleteThanks to both of you for your feedback. Charlotte seemed the most contemporary of the available princesses - but meant nothing to Galspray, our Australian blogger who was among those who road-tested it. And yes, "loudly" was the homophone indicator.
ReplyDeletenot being quite up (yet....we say, in hope...) to the standard weekend offerings, this puzzle is greatly welcomed. Enjoyed this, moved along merrily until AMEER, CARY - didn't parse 'up' / horse - COD Scarface . Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThanks Phil, beaten by Ameer but a very enjoyable puzzle 👍
ReplyDeleteZak
Always "yet" - think of it as like learning a new language. Your patience will be rewarded!
ReplyDeleteI think AMEER probably works slightly better for a Northerner to be fair.
ReplyDelete… mainly because i am familiar with ‘emir’ for the ruler
ReplyDeleteI'm from Australia too, so not really a Northerner 😂
ReplyDeleteClue was totally fair of course, and good humoured!
Zak
Enjoyable QC, which I solved fairly quickly, though had to change the spelling of AMEER to suit other clues! Biffed SCARFACE as not that familiar with Capone. Liked COLONEL, RADICLE, CARY, TEMPER, among others.
ReplyDeleteNot sure you can call young girls CHICKs any more!
Good fun today, so thanks vm, Phil and host John.
that was Countrywoman
ReplyDeleteWas puzzled by AMEER although we got it. Surely the spelling is usually AMIR? OED hasn't got the double E version at all.
ReplyDeleteAMEER/AMIR/EMIR It's one of those transliteration things where there are alternative spellings. I'm surprised AMEER is not in ODE but it is in Chambers and Collins.
ReplyDeleteVery nice puzzle. Cods arts and colonel. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteFrancesca liked helping, also omit!
ReplyDeleteLate to this as I've been unwell. And perhaps not fully better as I failed on CARY. Carry = Support too much for me to find through the fog of medicine. That apart, was on for a slowish finish anyway so shall hope to be back fighting fit tomorrow. Many thanks Phil for the puzzle.
ReplyDeleteHere's hoping you're back to full health quickly! Thanks as ever to all commenters.
ReplyDeleteA game of two halfs for me. Finished the top half quite quickly but could not finish the bottom section thanks to AMEER, CARY, TEMPER and PRINCESS. Not helped by having DUTCHESS for the latter.
ReplyDeleteMost enjoyable though and I really liked ASTRIDE for the well disguised anagram.
Thanks Phil, John and Sawbill.